1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to assemblies comprised of a pole and a wearable article.
Assemblies of the aforementioned type can be used while practicing any of cross-country skiing, ski touring, hiking, or mountaineering, and Nordic walking, as well as other activities. The invention also relates to an assembly of a pole and a handle, as well as to the handle.
2. Description of Background
The wearable article associated with the pole is generally a wrist strap wrapping the hand of the skier. The wrist strap can take the form of a glove or a strap forming a closed loop. Connected to the handle, the wrist strap prevents the skier from dropping the pole when he/she releases the handle. The wrist strap also makes it possible to improve the transmission of the skier's thrust forces to the pole, which is particularly advantageous for the practice of winter sports and summer activities mentioned above. The wrist strap also enables transmission of these bearing forces for a longer period of time, in particular because such transmission can be carried out without clenching of the user's fingers around the handle.
During practice of cross-country skiing, constant contraction of the hand muscles when taking supports can result in muscle soreness or muscle pain. Thus, a number of athletes lightly grip the pole handle with their fingers to avoid causing muscle pain in their hands and forearms. The wrist strap is thus used as a vector in the transmission of the propulsive force between the hand of the skier and the pole. The pole is then retained by the wrist strap, thereby also enabling the user to quickly grab the handle again to plant the same further forward.
In certain designs, the wrist strap can selectively be affixed to or separated from the grip handle.
A number of documents disclose such a wrist strap.
The Patent Publication EP 0 370 900 discloses various mechanisms for fastening the wrist strap on a handle, some of such mechanisms comprising a retaining element cooperating with a connecting element of the wrist strap and a latch for locking the retaining element in a configuration for engagement with the connecting element. In these solutions, the latch is not energized to switch to a stable position. In addition, it is apparent that these constructions are not very ergonomic in use, particularly for operating the latch. Due to the kinematics, it is impractical to actuate the latch with one hand, without using the other hand. Finally, these systems present a risk of unintentional triggering that releases the latch if the handle becomes caught or snagged during use.